Brown long-eared bat (Papo)

The brown long-eared bat or common long-eared bat (Plecotus auritus) is a small Eurasian insectivorous bat. Known as the 'whispering' bat for its almost silent echolocation noises, this little bat's huge ears make it an expert woodland insect hunter. As the name suggests, a brown long-eared bat's signature characteristic is its big ears which are almost as long as its body. When resting, it rolls its ears back or hides them underneath its wings. It is a medium-sized bat, growing to around 8cm in length, including ears. It has light grey-brown fur and a pale underside. This bat's diet consists of invertebrates like moths, earwigs, flies and beetles. They glide slowly when they hunt, diving low to forage for insects. They eat small prey mid-flight, but take bigger prey to a perch where they eat upside-down. Mating happens during the autumn, but bats can delay their pregnancies until they gather in maternity roosts in the spring. These maternity roosts can have groups of up to 30 pregnant bats. Unlike other bat species, male long-eared bats join the maternity roosts. Bat pups are born from late June to July and become independent after six weeks.